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Author: Glenda Brunson

Glenda Brunsonhttp://www.homewordsministry.comGlenda Brunson, is a retired Social Worker/ Counselor. She has been employed for the past thirty (30) years at various human services organizations which provided social work services, health education, parent training, and public speaking to at-risk families and children in the St. Petersburg area.
She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Work from Fort Valley State University (GA). She attended St. Petersburg Theological Seminary where her concentration was in the field of Pastoral Counseling.
She was ordained to the Pastorate at Solid Rock Christian Church, St. Petersburg, where she served as Co –Youth pastor and Co-Pastor of Christian Education. She presently serves as a worship leader at First Baptist Institutional Church. She is also a contributing writer, group leader, and Bible teacher to the Homewords Small Group Bible Study Ministry

For our lesson of Rebekah, Genesis 24; 25:19-34; 26:1-28 on pages 28-31, in our main text Women of the Bible by Jean E Syswerda.

1. Her name probably means “Loop” or “Tie”. (2, pg.28.)

2. Her character: Hard-working and generous, her faith was so great that she left her home forever to marry a man she had never met. Yet she played favorites with her sons and failed to trust God fully for the promise he had made. ( 3, pg. 28)

3. Rebekah was the daughter of Bethuel, Abraham’s nephew, sister of Laban, wife of Isaac,and mother of Esau and Jacob. (1, pg. 14)

4. Genesis 24:1-9, Abraham was now old and well advanced in years, and the Lord had blessed him in every way. 2. He said to the chief servant in his household, the one in charge of all he had, “Put your hand under my thigh. 3. I want you to swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you will not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I am living, 4. but will go to my country and my own relatives and get a wife for my son Isaac.(Ft. nt.Gen. 24:2-chief servant in his household. Probably Eliezer of Damascus, see note on 15:2). Put your hand under my thigh, Near the organ of procreation, probably because this oath was related to Abraham’s last will and testament and called for faithful implementation on the part of his son, Isaac must accept Abraham’s and God’s choice (see also Genesis 47:29 and note). 5. The servant asked him, “What if the woman is unwilling to come back with me to this land? Shall I then take your son back to the country you came from?” 6. “Make sure that you do not take my son back there,” Abraham said. 7. “The Lord, the God of heaven, who brought me out of my father’s household and my native land and who spoke to me and promised me an oath, saying, ‘To your offspring I will give this land’– he will send his angel before you so that you can get a wife for my son from there. 8. If the woman is unwilling to come back with you, then you will be released from this oath of mine. Only do not take myson back there.” 9. So the servant put his hand under the thigh of his master Abraham and swore an oath to him concerning this matter. (2, pg. 56)

5. Genesis 24:10-12 – Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels and left, taking with him all kinds of good things from his master. He set out for Aram Naharaim and made his way to the town of Nahor. He had the camels kneel down near the well outside the town; it was toward evening, the time the women go out to draw water. Then he prayed, “O Lord, God of my master Abraham, give me success today, and show kindness to my master Abraham.(1, pg 56.)

6. Genesis 24:15-18 – Before he had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel son of Milcah, who was the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor. The girl was very beautiful, a virgin; no man had ever lain with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again. The servant hurried to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water from your jar.” “Drink, my lord,” she said, and quickly lowered the jar to her hands and gave him a drink. (1, pg. 57)

7. Genesis 24:50-51 – Laban and Bethuel answered, this is from the Lord; we can say nothing to you one way or the other. Here is Rebekah; take her and go, and let her become the wife of your master’s son, as the Lord has directed. (1, pg 58)

8. Genesis 24:66-67 – Then the servant told Isaac all he had done. Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah, and he married Rebekah. So she became his wife, and he loved her; and Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death. (1, pg. 59)

9. Genesis 25:21-23 – Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was barren. The Lord answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the Lord. The Lord said to her, “Two nations are in your womb, and two people from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.”(1, pg.60-61)

10. Genesis 25:24-26 – When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in the womb. The first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment, so they named him Esau. After this, his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau’s heel; so he was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah gave birth to them. (1, pg. 61)

1. The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible, Volume Four R-Z, In Four Volumes, Abingdon Press, New York 1962.

Genesis 1:26 – Then God said, let us make man in our own image, in our own likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.

Genesis 2:7 – The Lord God formed the man from the dust, of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.

“The Genesis 2 account of God’s creation of man is introduced with a description of the actions of the God of Israel. Verse 7 begins with the phrase, ” And the Lord God…” This refers to YHWH, the Hebrew name for God. This is “Jehovah Elohim,” the self-existent and supreme God, the Ruler of all. While Genesis 2:7-25 focuses on the human being and the human experience, reverence for the holiness of God stands as the precursor to those events.” (1)

“The phrase “heavens and earth” is found in that order, three times in Genesis 1:1, 2:1 and 2:4. However, Genesis 2:4 then reverses the order and focuses on the human being on earth rather than God in heaven. This signals the shift in God’s emphasis to the human experience (Berlin and Brettler 2004). The shift also shows man’s complete dependence on God. Human origin is God’s responsibility and God is the source of sustenance.” (1)

“The creative act of putting man on earth was a unique operation of God. In verse 7 the words for “man” (Heb.’adam, aw-DAWM) and “ground” (Heb,. ‘adamah, ad-aw-MAW) come from the same root word. Man’s formation from the from the ground indicates God’s ability to make the inanimate animate. God formed, made, and established man by shaping, and fashioning similarly to an artist creating a painting or a potter rendering a piece of art. The basest ingredients God used to create man. These are not spectacular elements. They have no value, no reproductive qualities;yet they are the very items that God uses.” (1)

“God’s interaction with man was a two-fold process. First, God formed man from the dust of the ground. In English, we usually translate the word “dust” as fine particles. A stronger translation of “dust” would be “clods, lumps,of earth, soil or dirt.” This would indicate that God formed man from clumps of dirt.” (1)

“The second phase required God’s breathing into man’s nostrils. Formation of the human species culminated in a physical body, but the “breath of life was the spiritual phenomena that made man a living soul. The phrase “breath of life” means “the breath that gives life.” Until God put His breath into man, man was nothing but a lump of clay that could not move alone. The breath of God was the power that made the difference between the physical man and the spiritual man. Thus, Adam became a living being. Only the divine nature of God can bring that which is without life into life.” (1)

The New International Version of the Bible footnote to Genesis 1:26 teaches this: since human beings are made in God’s image they are all worthy of honor and respect; they are neither to be murdered (Gen 9:6) or cursed (James 3:9-10). (2)

We are living in a time when man is so devalued. We’ve become unwilling to support, care for, or nurture man. We find man being constantly replaced by other means to create life, to do meaningful work, and to take care of the world. Yet, there is a charge given to man by God in Genesis 1:28. What can be done to restore man to his rightful place of value? Jesus gave us two great commandments–to love God with all our hearts and souls and minds and strength, and our neighbor as ourselves. (Matthew 22:34-40)

Prayer: Heavenly Father, give us the courage to begin to show your love to our fellow-man so that your name may be glorified. In the name of Jesus, Amen

Matthew 11:9-13 “So I say: Ask and it will will be given unto you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?

If you then, though you are evil, know to give good gifts to your children, how much more will you father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.”

When you pray to God, do you really expect a positive response? Do you expect a response at all? If you are unsure how to answer this question, like many of us may be, perhaps it’s time to re-evaluate the kind of relationship you have with the heavenly Father.

When is the last time you really talked to God? When was the last time you really listened to God? Maybe your prayer-style has not been a conversation where active-listening was used at all. Here’s an example, a family member comes to talk to you, the person immediately starts to apologize for not coming sooner or more often. The person talks about how badly they now need your help with a list of favors, immediately. They further explain their desperation and their need for help as they urge you to get busy answering their requests. Is this example close to your/family member prayer style?

This would be the time to guide this family member through prayer, because it’s God’s guidance, through you that’s needed. It does little good, I feel, to say to someone who’s wings of faith are in their infancy, “just pray about it!”

Blackaby and King tells us in their book, Experiencing God If you do not have clear instructions from God in a matter,

-Pray and wait

-Learn patience

-Depend on God’s timing

-His timing is right and best.(pg. 75)

Now, we are not God, nor do we understand the mind of God or His Ways (Isaiah 55:8-9). God is however, availing Himself to us, each day through prayer.

“Prayer is a Relationship to a Person.”

“Prayer is a two-way fellowship and communication–you speak to God and He speaks to you. Prayer is not a one-way conversation in which you merely list everything you want God to do. Your personal prayer life may have been primarily one-way communication–you talking to God–but we now learn that prayer is much more than that.

” Prayer includes listening. In fact, what God says in prayer is far more important than what you say. Godalready knows what you are going to say. You, however, do not know what God is thinking.

Prayer is a relationship, not just a religious activity. Its purpose is to adjust you to God, not align God to your thinking. God doesn’t need your prayers. but He does want you to pray because of what He wants to do in and through your life as you pray. God speaks to His people by the Holy Spirit through prayer.” (1, pp 107-108)

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you for allowing each of us the privilege of communicating with you through the gift of prayer. We don’t take this gift for granted, but use it to stay on-task with you as we constantly receive your guidance for our lives. Enrich our prayer life, we pray. In your name. Amen.

“In the same way count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Therefore do no let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.

Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness.

For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.”

Have you seen Christians who freak out (v. lose or cause to lose emotional control from extreme excitement, shock, fear, joy, despair, etc.) regularly? I mean someone who is prone to lose all self-control. If you stood next to a professing non-believer when they’re in the middle of their tirade; you’d be unable to distinguish who was the unbeliever.

Have you talked to a Christian friend who was able to openly admit to “freaking out” due to a major unexpected life-event? It may have been losing a job, a home foreclosure, adult children issues, older-parent issues, or maybe even the unexpected death of a loved-one.

What can we do when a Christian is “freaking-out?” That’s the time to encourage them to fervently pray to God. (Psalm 32:5-6) Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord”—and you forgave the guilt of my sin.

Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to you while you may be found; surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him.”

I had an occasion just last week when I was “freaking-out”. It was just a little thing. My work schedule changed, unexpectedly and I allowed it to cause a domino-effect, because there were things I needed to get done before leaving home for work. My well-ordered morning schedule of the past weeks was in disarray, and I needed to either move faster, slow the clock down, or just leave some things undone. Instead of choosing, I “freaked out” , the old sin-nature took over faster than you can imagine and it scared me to the point that I stopped, got a pen and completed a Behavioral Observation on myself. I spoke to God, “Lord, you are too good to me, for me to act like this!”

When I finished the exercise, God had taken control of the situation, and put me back together again in an amazing way! God’s grace (Unmerited favor) is sufficient. I’m hoping that admitting to “freaking-out” though embarrasing, may help someone during a “crisis of belief” to trust God instead of “freaking-out.”

Prayer: “Lord, please help us to confidently put our trust in you to keep us and life’s situations under control before we over-react, during our crisis of belief. In the name of Jesus, Amen.

The church at Philadelphia, like the church at Smyrna was a church which received a passing grade from Jesus in His message to John. The church passed simply because it kept God’s commands to endure hardships patiently (verse 10). Here we may assume that keeping the faith, persevering, holding fast and staying in line for the love of God was not an easier task than it was in the other six churches. However, this church continued to love the Lord and stay on task in spite of the problems inside and outside the church.

As I look at the church of Philadelphia, the lesson is simple. This church did what God told them to do in spite of the surrounding influences. They didn’t let false teachings creep in, they didn’t set their own rules, they didn’t let complacency be their guide, and they most certainly got back on track whenever they fell off. Did they fall off the track? While the text doesn’t specifically say that they did, I believe that they did. However, with practicing love and patient endurance, they understood that following God was the most important thing that they could do.

What can we gain from this lesson of the church of Philadelphia? I encourage you to follow these conclusions: First, follow God in all things. No matter what the choices are, follow God’s choices and plan of action. No matter what problems you are faced with, follow God’s guidelines. No matter what others do, follow God’s orders. So many times we get off track because we forget God’s directions and respond inaccurately to what someone else does or does not do. Enduring hardship is especially difficult when it comes from another believer. But, no matter what the hardship is we must follow God. Others may not understand God’s instructions to you as you do. This doesn’t mean we abandon the task, for it is only in wholly following God that we become what He wants us to be and achieve the perfections He has in store for you. So always remember to follow God.

Secondly, in gaining lessons from the church of Philadelphia, we learn not to respond to the failure of other believers. What God has in store for you and the hardships that you face have nothing to do with the faithfulness of other believers. God’s instructions to you are your personal instructions from God. He may not have given the one you feel should help you the same message, but, when it is a God-sent message, there is help for you. Don’t get frustrated when the when the help doesn’t come in the expected manner. So many times we makes our friends our earthly guides. They can get in the way of what God is trying to accomplish through us. We spend too much time complaining about what other in Christ don’t do. We often make other believers the sacrificial lamb for our failures, not fully understanding that when God gives us a command, He is speaking to you and Satan will often confound the message to get you off-track. Why shouldn’t we focus on others when they seem like stumbling blocks? That’s simple, they are not our stumbling block, but Satan is. Ephesians 6:12 reminds us that we struggle not against flesh and blood, but against rulers, against authorities, against the powers of this dark world, against the spiritual forces in the heavenly reals (NIV). When we are opposed to doing what God has commanded remember the enemy is Satan and not the other Christian brother or sister.

Finally, that we must understand that the maturity levels in the faith are not the same. Paul reminds us in Ephesians 4:12-13 that we must work with all our fellow believers to give them a chance to develop in the faith. We must try to bring the most out of the believers in our surroundings so they will grow into mature Christians. This is why it is important to understand the Spiritual Gifts of the believers around us. If we don’t understand what those around us are sent from God to accomplish, we will never understand how they fit into the task God has individually given us. Given the scriptual fact that the maturity level of all Christians is not the same (Ephesians 4:14), and knowing that the Spirit has given all believers a “manifestation for the common good” (I Corinthians 12:7), we must remember that all the answers and ways of carrying out the efforts of the common good are not always going to be expressed and carried out in the same manner. Many will be opposite to the was we all feel the should be. But there is a standard, and that is to follow God’s commands.

What do we do to be sure we follow God’s commands? Test everything through God. Test everything through Scripture, prayer and patience. Always be insistent to do God’s will and follow his path. Be firm to follow. Resolute to do what is required. Vacate vacillation and withdraw from wavering. Always remember the Church of Philadelphia got it right.

From our lesson of Anna, Luke 2:22-38, Here are some important points. The points do not directly answer the questions on pages 162-165 of the text, but may help you in our discussion of the Saturday Bible Study 12/06/2014.

1. Her name means “Favor” or “Grace”. (3, pg. 162)

2. She was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. (Luke 2:36)

3. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshipped night and day, fasting and praying. (Luke 2: 37-38).

4. Though she could not echo the prayer of Jewish men, who praised God for creating them neither Gentiles nor women, she could be grateful for the privilege of ascending beyond the Court of the Gentiles to the Women’s Court, where she would be that much closer to the Most Holy Place. Having done so, she bowed her head, rocking back and forth to the rhythm of her prayers (Psalm 84:1-3). (2, pg. 302).

How lovely is your dwelling place,

O Lord Almighty!

My soul yearns, even faints,

for the courts of the Lord;

my heart and my flesh cry out

for the living God.

Even the sparrow has found a home,

and the swallow a nest for herself,

where she may have her young–

a place near your altar,

O Lord Almighty, my King and my God.

5. Suddenly a voice interrupted her recitation of the familiar psalm. Old Simeon she saw, was holding a baby to his breast, pronouncing words that thrilled her soul: “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.”(Luke 2:29-32) ( 2, pg. 302)

6. Like her, Simeon had lived for nothing but Israel’s consolation. Though he had not seen, yet he had believed. Anna watched as the child’s parents hung on the old man’s words. Then he handed the infant back to his mother, this time speaking more softly: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”(Luke 2:34-35) (2, pg. 302)

7. The old woman Anna had probably spent upwards of sixty years in the temple. In fact, she never left it, ” but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying” (Luke 2:37). The evidence of her devotion is not just in the fact that she spent all those years in prayer, but that she recognized the Christ. (He was, after all, only six weeks old.) Yet even though Anna had relinquished a normal lifestyle, spent hours of every day in prayer, and gone without food as a sign of devotion, she was still not allowed access to the actual temple. Despite being relegated to the outer court for women, however, she never let that restriction squeeze her heart or strangle her love for God.(2, pg. 304)

8. Now she too felt like a sparrow soaring freely in the house of God. It no longer mattered that she was forbidden entry into the innermost courts of the temple. God himself was breaking down the dividing walls between Jew and Gentile, male and female, revealing himself to all who hungered for his presence. That day a child had transformed the Women’s Court into the holiest place of all. (2, pg. 303)

9. Scripture doesn’t tell us whether Anna ever actually wished she were allowed to enter the innermost courts of the temple in Jerusalem. But her longing for God is obvious. Clearly, she was a woman with great spiritual appetite, who abandoned her life to God and was rewarded by meeting Jesus and his parents just forty days after his birth, during the presentation in the temple. (2, pg. 303)

10. The customs of her time may have restricted the physical location of Anna’s worship, but no earthly regulation could bind her actual worship or devotion. Be an Anna! Don’t let anything limit your devotion to God! No earthly rules or restrictions. No past mistakes or sins. No life situations that you can’t overcome. Let nothing get in the way of worshiping your God and recognizing your Savior. (2, pg. 304)

1. The NIV Study Bible, Zondervan, 1995. (All Scriptures)

2. Women of the Bible, One Year Devotional Study of Women in Scripture, Ann Spangler and Jean E. Syswerda, Zondervan, 2007.

2. It is impossible to write a historical sketch of Mary’s life, so inadequate are the data in the gospels and so unreliable are the traditions of the church. Such data as we have are contained in stories whose purpose is not historical narration but theological affirmation: they declare that God has come to man in a child born of a virgin, that he may redeem them from sin and death and lead them into his blessed kingdom. Mary is depicted as the instrument of God’s gracious purpose (the ” handmaid of the Lord.” Luke 1:38.) (1, pg. 290)

3. Family Background. We know very little concerning Mary’s background. She was a devout Jewess, apparently living in Nazareth at the time when she conceived. Since both genealogies (Matt. 1:2-16; Luke 3:23-28) are Joseph’s, we do not know whether she belonged to the Davidic line, though the angel’s words in Luke 1:32 would at least imply that the early church believed that she was so descended. (1, pg. 290)

4. Virginal Conception. At the time when she conceived, she was betrothed to Joseph, who is said to have been “of the house of David” (Luke 1:27 and the genealogies ). He is described in Matthew (1:18 -25) as a God-fearing, law-abiding man, of considerable nature. Since betrothal in Judaism was tantamount to marriage, except for residence in the bridegroom’s home. (same pg. 290) Mary’s pregnancy was at first a shock to Joseph. How could this condition have occurred except by an adulterous act? The stories in both Matthew and Luke explain the pregnancy as due to the Holy Spirit (Matt. 1:18, 20; Luke 1:35), the purpose of God being to raise up for His people a divine Savior (“Emanuel” Matthew 1:23); “the Son of the Most High” (Luke 1:32), who ” will reign over the house of Jacob for ever (Luke 1:33). Joseph’s fears were allayed by the assurances of an angel, and he is said to have proceeded with his plans with respect to Mary. (1, pg. 290)

5. The Birth of Jesus Foretold:

In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. (Luke 1:26-30)

6. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.” (Luke 1:32-33)

7. And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me holy is his name. ( Luke 1: 46-49)

8. The Visit of the Magi

After they heard the king, and his disciples, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped 0ver the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with the gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route. (Matthew 2:9-10)

9. Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw the mother there and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Dear woman, here is your son,” and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.” (John 19:25-27)

10. By the time Mary opened her eyes opened her eyes, the setting sun had turned the city into a golden land. She smiled, wiping the tears from her wrinkled face. How true the angel’s words had been. No woman from Eve onward had ever been blessed as she, the mother of the Messiah had been. Yes, the past was alive inside her, but it was the future that filled her with joy. Soon she would see her son again and this time it would be his hands that would wipe away the last of her tears. (3, page 295)

1. The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible, Volume Three K-Q, In Four Volumes, Abingdon Press, New York 1962.

2. The NIV Study Bible, Zondervan, 1995. (All Scriptures)

3. Women of the Bible, One Year Devotional Study of Women in Scripture, Ann Spangler and Jean E. Syswerda, Zondervan, 2007.